SAN JOSE, Calif. – Wisconsin’s return to the NCAA Tournament, after a one-year hiatus, was short and bittersweet.

One and done.

Poor shooting was the primary culprit one more time, this time for the last time in 2018-19, though uncharacteristic defensive breakdowns contributed to a tight contest turning into a blowout after halftime.

Twelfth-seeded Oregon followed the lead of Payton Pritchard, who dominated UW’s guards in a 72-54 victory in front of a crowd of 14,331 Friday at the SAP Center.

"There was a seven, eight-minute stretch there where we got discombobulated defensively," UW coach Greg Gard said. "Obviously, we had a hard time making perimeter shots for most of the game, but we were still battling and finding ways.

"But then we had three or four possessions consecutively where we didn't get good looks or turned it over, and they were able to capitalize. And then they got separation."

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Wisconsin forward Ethan Happ saves the ball from going out of bounds during the second half against Oregon, but his teammates on the bench part instead of saving him from crashing into the chairs during the Badgersloss to the Ducks on Thursday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in San Jose, Calif. Kelley L Cox, Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

Oregon guard Payton Pritchard drives in for a shot against Wisconsin guard D'Mitrik Trice (left) and forward Ethan Happ during the first half. Pritchard, who the Badgers heavily recruited out of high school, led all players with 19 points. Chris Carlson, Associated Press

Wisconsin guard Brad Davison drives between a pair of Oregon players during the second half Friday. Davison had a miserable day from the field, missing all eight of his shots, including 7 three-pointers. Chris Carlson, Associated Press

Oregon's Louis King shoots a three-pointer over UW's Kobe King during the second half. Louis King hit all 3 of his three-point atteampts and finished with 17 points. Kelley L Cox, Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

"There were a lot of threes that I shot that I thought were going to go down," sophomore Brad Davison said. "I couldn’t break the seal. That is extremely disappointing because I know I left a lot of good looks out there."

Davison and D’Mitrik Trice, a combined 11 for 48 from three-point range in the previous five games, were off the mark one more time.

Davison was 0 for 3 from three-point range in the first half and finished 0 for 7. Trice hit 2 of 10 attempts, Brevin Pritzl finished 0 for 3 and Aleem Ford and Kobe King were both 0 for 2.

"Honestly, I think that we got pretty good looks," Trice said. "I thought Ethan did a really good job of getting out when the double-team came, and I think we reversed the ball really, really well. It was just a matter of making shots, and more times than not we obviously missed them."

Ethan Happ, averaging 15.8 points and 8.3 rebounds in six NCAA Tournament games before Friday, was held in check. He left with 1 minute 28 seconds left with UW trailing by 19 points. His final line: 12 points, eight rebounds, five turnovers and no assists.

"Anytime we had an opportunity to double him, we wanted to," Oregon coach Dana Altman said. "You know, he's probably best as a play-maker. The thing that I'm probably most happy is he didn't have the five assists that he averages. You know, zero assists and five turnovers."

Nate Reuvers, who missed all seven shots in the Big Ten semifinal loss to Michigan State, hit 3 of 10 shots against Oregon. He finished with nine points and five rebounds.

Senior Khalil Iverson contributed nine points and four rebounds in the opening half to help UW turn a seven-point deficit into a 25-25 tie. He finished with 12 points and five rebounds.

Oregon brought an eight-game winning streak into the tournament, built mostly on its smothering defense.

The Ducks (24-12) smothered UW for most of the game but also dismantled UW's defense over the final 20 minutes.

"I think we probably had our worst seven minutes of defense all year," Reuvers said of a critical stretch during which Oregon turned 48-42 lead into a 63-49 cushion. "We usually have the answer when we don’t shoot well. But to give up that many points in the second half, it’s not good."

Pritchard, arguably the Ducks' most valuable player, was fabulous from the start.

He carried Oregon with 12 points, three rebounds and three assists in 17 first-half minutes and finished with 19 points, eight assists and five rebounds.

"He was great," UW assistant Howard Moore said. "He controlled the game, controlled the tempo. He scored but kept guys involved. He is a great floor general."

He got plenty of help after halftime from Louis King (3 for 3 from three-point range, 17 points), Paul White (14 points) and Kenny Wooten (nine points, six rebounds and four blocks).

"You’ve got to put the ball in the basket," Gard said. "It is a simple game when it comes to that. And that alleviates the pressure in the paint...

"We knew we were going to have to play well. At this point in the year, you’re not going to play a bad opponent. And if you have a stretch of time where you deviate and don’t do some good things, you’re going to get sent home."